Portable electronic device with an integrated switchable mirror

ABSTRACT

Electronic devices with displays having switchable mirrors are described. The switchable mirror covers the display and is capable of switching from a transparent state to a reflecting state responsive to a switch in the electronic device. In one embodiment, the display is switched off when the switchable mirror switches to its reflecting state. In another embodiment, the switchable mirror is switched to its reflecting state when the electronic device is switched off.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/306,939, filed on Jan. 17, 2006 which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND

The present invention is related to switchable mirrors and their integration into electronic devices, including portable electronic devices such as cellular telephones, sometimes called cell or mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), personal music/video players, such as MP3 players and IPods, and the like, and larger electronic devices, such as laptop computers.

Such portable and in most cases, handheld, electronic devices are becoming more and more common in modern society as their ease of use and functionalities increase. For example, some current cell phones, while no larger than one's palm, operate more like pocket-size computers. Besides voice communications, other functions of such telephones include the ability to send and receive e-mail, to “surf the Web” (i.e., to access the WorldWide Web), to manage schedules with personal calendars, to take and send digital photographs, to act as a platform for games, and other activities. Future projected functions of portable electronic devices include the wireless reception of television and music signals, the so-called mobile media. Of course, the merger of functions often blurs the terminology of a particular device. Whether a combination of cellular telephone and a personal digital assistant is called a cellular telephone with PDA features or a PDA with cell phone features is often a reflection of marketing rather than a weighing of device functions.

The miniaturization of portable electronic devices and their increased functionalities have furthermore allowed the introduction into consumer society of devices which were never intended as such. For example, GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) devices were developed originally for the military, but as sizes and costs declined, such devices appeared in the outdoor recreation market. Today GPS features are found in a myriad of handheld devices, such as cell phones, to guide the user to selected locations, such as a desired restaurant.

Nearly of all of these devices have a flat screen display by which the state or operation of the device is communicated to the viewer. The disclosed embodiments use the flat screen display to add another function to the device, albeit a simple, but useful one.

SUMMARY

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention provide a portable electronic device which has a housing sized to be held in a person's hand; a display mounted in the housing, the display showing the state or operation of the portable electronic device; and a switchable minor covering the display and capable of switching from a transparent state to a reflecting state responsive to a switch in the portable electronic device. In one embodiment of the present invention, the display is switched off when the switchable minor switches to its reflecting state. In another embodiment of the present invention, the switchable minor is switched to its reflecting state when the portable electronic device is switched off. The portable electronic device can be a cellular telephone, a PDA, a music player, and even a GPS device. Exemplary embodiments of the present invention also provide for a larger portable electronic device, such as a laptop computer, with a switchable minor covering the display of the laptop computer and capable of switching from a transparent state to a reflecting state.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a representation of a portable electronic device with a switchable minor, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded detailed view of the elements of a flat screen display with switchable mirror, according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is detailed view of switchable mirror covering a flat screen display partially, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments are shown. This disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the exemplary embodiments set forth therein. Rather, these exemplary embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of this disclosure to those skilled in the art.

As stated above, portable electronic devices employing a flat screen display, typically a liquid crystal display, or LCD, have become ubiquitous. Indeed, to conduct many businesses, a laptop computer and a cellular telephone have become necessities. By integrating an electrically controlled switchable minor with the flat-screen display of a portable electronic device, the portable electronic device provides the user with a convenient and inconspicuous on-demand minor. The user of such a device can check his or her appearance after using a cellular telephone, for example, without carrying a separate minor. For normal operations of the device, the mirror switches to its transparent state so that the display is visible.

There are different switchable mirror technologies which have been recently developed. Early practical switchable minor are based on hydrogen-induced phase transition in rare earth metals. Subsequently significant progress toward lower-cost, greater reliability and improved performance switchable minors has been made by transition metal-based switchable mirrors, or TMSM. Thin films of an active transition metal material, bonded to glass substrates, can switch reversibly between reflecting and transparent states, either by exposure to hydrogen or by application of an electric current. The TMSM film is laminated between electrodes with other electrolytes. In many cases, the active film can also be one of electrodes. These types of devices are also known as electrochromic devices.

Another development in switchable mirrors is based on lithium ion insertion that is even more stable and potentially lower cost than TMSM. As such, large-scale application, such as building windows, of this technology is now being contemplated. Of course, the present invention uses switchable minors configured to switch electrically on a far smaller scale.

In one embodiment, a switchable mirror 10 is attached to the surface of an LCD 12 which is mounted on the palm-sized housing 15 of a representative portable electronic device 11 illustrated in FIG. 1. The housing 15 also holds a keypad 16. The area of the switchable mirror 10 is equal to the area of the display 12 so that the mirror 10 fits over the LCD 12. The power source of the portable electronic device 11, which may be either a battery or a source external to the device 10, also provides power to the switchable minor 10. An electronic switch represented by the switch 14, commanded by either a dedicated key 13 of the keypad 16 or device software turns the power on or off to the switchable minor 10 to change its optical property from a (mostly) transparent state to a (mostly) reflecting state. When the switchable mirror 10 is in its transparent state, the underlying display is visible and the portable electronic device 11 functions normally. When the switchable mirror 10 is in its reflecting state, the underlying display can be powered off and the portable electronic device 11 functions as a mirror.

Weight savings can be achieved if the top glass sheet of an LCD 31 is shared with a switchable minor 30, such as shown in FIG. 2. It should be noted that the following description is not intended as a complete description of the construction of LCDs, but rather how a switchable minor can be integrated into an LCD. In this embodiment, the LCD 32 of the portable electronic device 31 is formed by a glass sheet 26 upon which is deposited a first set of LCD electrodes, such as a defined layer of indium-tin oxide (ITO) and a polarizing filter sheet; liquid crystal material 25; and a glass sheet 24 with a second set of LCD electrodes (and a set of thin film transistors). Insulating elastic bushings (not shown) around the edges of the glass sheets 24 and 26 separate the glass sheets and confine the liquid crystal material 25 between them. A polarizing filter sheet 21 completes the LCD.

The elements of the switchable minor 30 are arranged between the polarizing filter sheet 21 and the glass sheet 24. Upon the inner surface (the side facing the display) of the sheet 22 is deposited a layer of electrochromic film and the mirror electrodes. An electrolyte layer 23 is placed against the electrochromic film. The counter electrode for the switchable mirror is deposited on the outer surface of the glass sheet 24. For a description of the construction of switchable mirrors and their materials, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,647,166.

The switch (not shown in FIG. 2) for the switchable mirror 30 is activated via a dedicated key, such as key 13 in FIG. 1, or by a combination of keystrokes on the key pad of the portable electronic device 31. The optical property of the switchable mirror changes between a transparent state and a reflecting state. When the switchable mirror is in its reflecting state, the display of the device is turned off since the display can no longer be seen. Power is saved. Furthermore, it may desirable that when the portable electronic device itself is turned off, the switchable mirror be in its reflecting state. This is achieved by the appropriate selection of the electrochromic material, such as a Ni—Mg alloy, and the operation of the mirror switch when the device is turned off. That is, the electrochromic material is in its reflecting state when there is no voltage applied to it. This feature is particularly useful for outdoor recreation devices, such as GPS devices. Even if the device is dead, the reflecting mirror serves as a useful signaling device to search parties, for example.

The switchable minor has been described as covering the entire surface of the underlying display of the portable electronic device. Alternatively, the mirror can extend partially over the display surface. FIG. 3 shows such an arrangement. In this example, the switchable mirror 40 covers the center of the display surface so that a marginal portion 41 of the display surface extends around the mirror 40. Nearly all LCDs are backlit by fluorescent bulbs currently and by LEDs (Light-Emitting Diodes) in the near future to ensure a bright display. With the increasing luminescence of the backlighting, especially by LEDs, the display of the portable electronic device can provide a “lighted vanity minor” when the switchable mirror 40 is switched to its reflecting state.

Furthermore, it has been assumed that the switchable mirror is flat. If the minor is concave, the switchable mirror in its reflecting state is a magnifier allowing the viewer to better see his or her reflection. Such minors allow not only detailed reflections of the viewer for vanity purposes, but are also useful for medical or hygienic purposes. Contact lens users can better see their eyes to insert their lenses or to adjust lenses which have slipped from their proper locations in the eye.

Hence the described embodiments of the present invention have many uses and can be adapted to many different portable electronic devices.

Therefore, while the description above provides a full and complete disclosure of the illustrated embodiments of the present invention, various modifications, alternate constructions, and equivalents will be obvious to those with skill in the art. Thus, the scope of the present invention is limited solely by the metes and bounds of the appended claims and their equivalents. 

1. An electronic device, comprising: a housing sized so that the electronic device is portable; a display mounted in the housing; and a switchable mirror covering the display and operable to switch from a transparent state to a reflecting state responsive to a switch in the portable electronic device, wherein the switchable mirror covers a center of the display, and a margin of the display extends around the switchable minor.
 2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the housing is sized to be held in a person's hand.
 3. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the display is switched off when the switchable mirror switches to the reflecting state.
 4. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the switchable mirror is switched to the reflecting state when the portable electronic device is switched off.
 5. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the portable electronic device is selected from the group comprising cellular telephones, PDAs, music players, and GPS devices.
 6. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the switchable mirror is flat.
 7. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic device comprises a laptop computer.
 8. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the display is switched off when the switchable mirror switches to the reflecting state.
 9. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the switchable mirror is switched to the reflecting state when the portable electronic device is switched off.
 10. The electronic device system of claim 7, wherein the switchable minor is flat.
 11. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the switchable mirror includes a concave surface facing away from the display.
 12. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a backlight comprising light-emitting diodes.
 13. The electronic device of claim 7, further comprising a backlight comprising light-emitting diodes.
 14. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the switchable mirror includes a concave surface facing away from the display.
 15. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the switchable mirror comprises a polarizing filter sheet and a glass sheet
 16. An electronic device, comprising: a housing sized so that the electronic device is portable; a display mounted in the housing; and a switchable mirror covering the display and operable to switch from a transparent state to a reflecting state responsive to a switch in the portable electronic device when the switch is activated via a dedicated key; wherein the switchable minor covers the entire surface of the display.
 17. The electronic device of claim 17, wherein the switchable minor comprises a polarizing filter sheet and a glass sheet
 18. An electronic device, comprising: a housing sized so that the electronic device is portable; a display mounted in the housing; and a switchable mirror covering the display and operable to switch from a transparent state to a reflecting state responsive to a switch in the portable electronic device when the display of the device is turned off, wherein the switchable minor covers the entire surface of the display.
 19. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein the switchable mirror comprises a polarizing filter sheet and a glass sheet. 